Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Monday, October 27, 2008

Man I'm really having a hard time with life lately. And reajusting to my cubicle and fluorescent lighting is making it just that much harder. Can't wait till the end of this week. If I'm not back into the swing of things by then, well... I guess we'll deal with it then.

Even though the fluorescent lights are painful, I might have to consider putting another one or two of them in my house. Should also check the house for vampires. I have a feeling there are a few lurking in our 2nd bedroom.

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Monday, October 20, 2008

Oh Bumpa. Thank you for taking such good care of me when I was small. I always felt safe with you nearby.

Heading to Detroit tomorrow to say goodbye. Will be good to be home and away from work and life in general. Been walking around in a little cloud for the past day or so. Not that clouds are bad. They looked really pretty yesterday afternoon outside of the dollar store:

Monday, October 13, 2008

I got nothing. Got up very early. Worked. Worked hard at the gym. I'm really into that lately. Its a good thing. Watched some news there. I hate the news these days. It's going to give me hives.

Here. This is better. I don't know if it has anything with my recent dental work, but Z got all interested in sonic toothbrushes and invested in one for us this weekend. It's intense. I can't wait for my next cleaning to see if the dentist will notice a difference.

Gosh. I'm so happy I just got to use that tooth image.

Whoa. We're watching American Experience: Nixon, and someone just used the analogy "Once the toothpaste is out of the tube, it's hard to get back in."

That's great.

Anyone remember the story where Ramona Quimby squeezed out an entire tube of toothpaste in one shot? That was also great.

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Oh oh! Tomorrow is my half birthday and Z and I are going to Little Italy (i.e.Taylor) street to get a fancy dinner with fancy breads and fancy gnocchi and wine and I'm really excited about this. We'll do it right after work. After I get back from the gym. You know. Preemptive carb burning. I'm officially in my 30s now and I need to do that kind of thing.

Tonight I went and got some cavities fixed at the dentist. They ended up having to give me six shots - one of which was in the roof of my mouth - and that, my friends, is not fun. Now it's 10:00 at night and my nose and left eye are still numb. I keep hurting myself. It sucks.

It also kind of sucks that they have televisions in front of each patient chair and today they chose to show me Sex & the City - the movie. Not that that sucks, but it does totally suck to listen to people "doing it" all over the tv while your teeth are being drilled. Why not make an uncomfortable moment even more uncomfortable?

Man, last time I went there they had me watching Arrested Development. That's not bad, but the dentist just happened to pause the dvd to talk to me right when Kitty was flashing her boobs at what's his name. Maybe if it were someone else it would've just been funny, but for me it was both funny and awkward, because the woman who plays Kitty happens to be someone who went to my high school in real life. Ugh.

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

I don't know why this result surprises me. I never thought of myself as such a socialist. I mean, should we not be subsidizing museums? I'd think for what they're worth, it's probably a small portion of our budget in relation to some of the things we should be handling. ?? And I never said anything about national healthcare, although, yeah, basic healthcare would be novel. I can't help it when I see a hugely pregnant woman sleeping under a bridge. Or maybe I've listened to too much Stereolab in my time.

Higher permissiveness, on either axis, indicates a "live and let live" philosophy. Of course, we're almost conditioned in America, "Land of the Free", to think positively of such a philosophy. But practically speaking, permissiviness (or its opposite, regulation) can create any number of outcomes:

For example, on the economic axis, a highly permissive system, like the American system of the early 1900s, might mean things like low taxes and increased scientific innovation. It might also result, as it did back then, in unrestricted child labor and millions of poor people with black lung.

At the other end of the economic spectrum, a highly regulated system might conserve the environment, establish national health care, and eliminate poverty. But as we've learned from the Soviet system, extreme regulation can also lead to stagnation, sameness, and unhappiness.